Update

It time to play catch up with the blog again. On Tuesday I did go on the Shop 'Til You Drop day trip to Willow Bend Mall in Plano. It is a very upscale mall with Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue and lots of smaller high end shops. I did not buy one thing, but I consider the trip very worthwhile. I did lots of window shopping. I had a nice chat with a salesman in the Apple store and got many of the questions that I have about MacBooks answered. He told me that there will be a free upgrade to the current operating system once Apple officially announces the new version. That still leaves me with the same problems I faced at the time Microsoft was about to release Vista. Anyway our group was very small. There were only four of us who met for lunch at the Neiman Marcus Mariposa restaurant. I enjoyed my lunch. When I lived in Houston, I used to frequently have lunch at the Neiman Marcus store in the Galleria. It reminded me of old times.

 

On Tuesday Microsoft sent eleven updates to my computer. For the first time in four months the updates installed and did not cause any of the failed shutdowns that require me to hold down the power button. It has only been two days since the updates were installed, but the computer has performed flawlessly since then. I have my hope up again that they have finally fixed the problems. I am reading that many businesses are delaying installing Vista until Service Pack 1 is released. I do not think that is necessary. With all the updates Microsoft is releasing I feel that the equivalent of a full service pack is being sent out in pieces. My computer has definitely become more stable.

 

On Tuesday when I got home after the shopping trip I checked my email. A comment from this blog had been forwarded to my email. As I read through it. I realized that the man who had written it is the son of my only first cousin on my mother's side of the family. I had not seen him since he was a small boy. He has a sister who is one year younger. She had found the online CNN interview I did on retirement last year. Her brother is a computer geek and took it from there. He found my blog. We have been emailing and sending pictures back and forth for two days. Yesterday afternoon he called me, and we talked for over an hour. We were raised in very different environments, but we have so much in common. Genetics must play a major part in our makeup.

 

Last night I went to the first meeting of a new travel group that is being formed at Frisco Lakes. They are going call it Frisco Lakes Independent Travelers. FLIT for short. A man who is a weekend anchor for the local Fox TV station and also hosts a show on Texas travel talked and answered questions. There seems to be a lot of interest in short trips around Texas. I am ready for that kind of travel. I have covered a good part of the globe. With all the security measures that are now in place it is pure misery to fly. I am content to stay closer to home.

 

I have continued with my walking.  One of my neighbors was at the fitness center this morning. She is encouraging me to make an appointment with our fitness director for an orientation session on the exercise machines. The walking track is on the second floor. As I walk, I have been watching the people working out on the machines below. I have been reluctant to use the machines, but maybe I should check them out.

 

This afternoon, it is time to play bridge again. I have really fallen behind in reading the Bridge for Dummies book.